]]>Target has agreed to pay $10 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by victims of the company's 2013 data breach – a massive hack that exposed up to 70 million people.

According to CBS News, the settlement has been OK'ed, but awaits final approval from a federal district court. The settlement is large enough to offer up to $10,000 to each individual victim – but as usual with this type of case, a lot will depend on how many injured parties wind up in the claim.

"We are pleased to see the process moving forward and look forward to its resolution," Target spokesperson Molly Snyder told CBS News.

In December of 2013, Target announced an unknown intrusion into its systems, including payment card data. At the time, Target said that 40 million credit and debit cards had been impacted.

A month later, the number of affected parties had risen to 70 million. The breach, which Target said was aided by foreign software installed on payment machines, affected customers who shopped at Target from November 27, 2013, to December 15, 2013.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which represents Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, brought mortgage-backed securities allegations against the second largest bank in America. Now Bank of America will have to pay $9.5 billion in the settlement they agreed upon with FHFA on Wednesday.

The FHFA "alleged violations of federal and state securities laws against BofA, Countrywide and Merrill Lynch in connection with private label, residential mortgage based securities purchased by Fannie and Freddie between 2005 and 2007."

Terms of the agreement have Bank of America paying $6.3 billion in cash to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Bank of America will also have to repurchase $3.2 billion worth of bad residential mortgage based securities.

“FHFA has acted under its statutory mandate to recover losses incurred by the companies and American taxpayers and has concluded that this resolution represents a reasonable and prudent settlement of these cases. This settlement also represents an important step in helping restore stabili ty to our broader mortgage market and moving to bring back the role of private firms in providing mortgage credit. Many potential homeowners will benefit from increasing certainty in the marketplace and that is very much the direction we should be taking,” said FHFA Director Melvin L. Watt.

Bank of America said in a statement, “The FHFA settlement resolves one of the most significant remaining pieces of RMBS securities litigation facing the company. With this settlement, Bank of America has now resolved approximately 88 percent of the unpaid principal balance of all RMBS as to which RMBS securities litigation has been filed or threatened for all Bank of America-related entities.”

While this may be a bit of a setback for Bank of America, they did just pass the Fed's CCAR exam, allowing Bank of America to repurchase $4 billion in common stock and raise their quarterly common stock dividend to $.05 per share.

Another agreement was also reached for Bank of America. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman brought a lawsuit against Bank of America in 2010 alleging they failed to "disclose losses at Merrill Lynch prior to the company’s acquisition of the Wall Street giant in 2008."

In this agreement Bank of America will pay $15 million to settle the claims brought against them by Schneiderman. The deal also involves Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis paying $10 million. Lewis will not be able to serve as an officer or a director of a public company for three years under the agreement.

“Since I took office, I’ve acted on the belief that no one, no matter how rich or powerful, should escape accountability for their actions -- especially ones that caused such damage to shareholders,” said Schneiderman.

]]>Dana Snay’s Facebook Post Costs Father $80khttp://www.webpronews.com/dana-snays-facebook-post-costs-father-80k-2014-03/
http://www.webpronews.com/dana-snays-facebook-post-costs-father-80k-2014-03/#commentsThu, 06 Mar 2014 05:29:47 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=328749A Florida teen may have just cost her dad a major cash flow opportunity after breaching a legal confidentiality agreement. According to the Miami Herald, Patrick Snay, 69, was the headmaster at Gulliver Preparatory School in Miami, Fla., for a ... Read More

In 2010, Gulliver did not renew his employment contract. Therefore, Patrick decided to sue the school for age discrimination and won an $80,000 settlement in 2011.

Unfortunately, a Facebook post by his teenage daughter, Dana Snay, may have jeopardized those future funds.

The Gulliver graduate turned to social media in February to boast about her father's win.

Dana's post read:

“Mama and Papa Snay won the case against Gulliver. Gulliver is now officially paying for my vacation to Europe this summer. SUCK IT.”

Dana's page, which has over 1,000 Facebook friends, is followed by a number of students and alumni from the school.(image)

Only four days after confirming the payout, the status update eventually got back to the school's lawyer. He then took necessary action to appeal the verdict.

Clearly the issue at hand is not solely Dana's fault, since her father is the one who actually violated the settlement's standard confidential clause.

He argues that he decided to tell Dana about it because she was already aware of the lawsuit and suffers from “psychological scars” caused by the school.

“We knew what the restrictions were, yet we needed to tell her something,” he told the Miami Herald.

Third District Court Judge Linda Ann Wells explained to the newspaper why the case was thrown out.

“Snay violated the agreement by doing exactly what he had promised not to do,” she said. "His daughter then did precisely what the confidentiality agreement was designed to prevent.”

Patrick currently is headmaster at Riviera Preparatory Academy in Coral Gables. His attempt at saving his money includes presenting the current ruling to the Florida Supreme Court. He plans to either appeal the ruling or request a rehearing.

Depending on the details of the contract, it's more than likely that Patrick will never reap the benefits of the 2011 settlement.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/dana-snays-facebook-post-costs-father-80k-2014-03/feed/4Starbucks Kraft Lawsuit Settles: Coffee Chain to Pay $2.76 Billionhttp://www.webpronews.com/starbucks-kraft-lawsuit-settles-coffee-chain-to-pay-2-76-billion-2013-11/
Wed, 13 Nov 2013 23:52:17 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=281427After a grueling three-year legal entanglement, the Starbucks-Kraft lawsuit has finally come to an end. Earlier today, an arbitrator determined that Starbucks will pay a total of approximately $2.76 billion as a monetary settlement to diffuse their legal dispute with ... Read More

]]>After a grueling three-year legal entanglement, the Starbucks-Kraft lawsuit has finally come to an end. Earlier today, an arbitrator determined that Starbucks will pay a total of approximately $2.76 billion as a monetary settlement to diffuse their legal dispute with Kraft.

On Tuesday, the Starbucks Corporation and Mondelez International both released statements explaining how the staggering cost were determined. Both companies explained that $2.23 billion would cover damages and the other $527 million would serve as compensation for attorney fees.

Mondelez International, Inc., which comprises the food brands of the former Kraft Foods, will receive the monetary award for the compiled damages. The company, which is also houses the Cadbury and Oreo brands, stated that the appropriated funds will be used for stock acquisition purposes. Mondelez has plans to buy back it's stock once priority expenses and taxes have been covered.

The stock numbers also depicted the companies intentions in after-hour trading. Mondelez shares rose approximately 97 cents, while Starbucks stock suffered a 1.5 percent decline of $1.20 per share, As a result, the stock price fell to $79.41.

In 1998, Kraft Foods established a marketing merger with Starbucks to exclusively distribute the company's coffee brand in stores. That contract was renegotiated in 2004, and reinstated for another 10 years, set to expire in 2014. However, in November of 2010, Starbucks opted to sever the agreement with Kraft. Kraft sought to challenge the termination of the contract through arbitration proceedings, stating breach of contract. The two food and beverage conglomerates officially severed ties in March of 2011.

According to the Huffington Post, Starbucks refuted the company's claims, stating that Kraft had not met all of the requirements mandated under the contract. Kraft Foods was accused of failing to include the company when making executive decisions in reference to marketing and consumer relations. The nationwide coffee chain also stated that the decision to separate from Kraft was consistent with the terms of the initial contract. On Tuesday, Starbucks released a brief statement expressing their sentiments on the arbitration conclusion.

"We believe Kraft did not deliver on the responsibilities to our brand under the agreement, the performance of the business suffered as a result and that we had a right to terminate the agreement without payment to Kraft," Starbucks said.

]]>Penn State to Pay $59.7 Million in Abuse Settlementhttp://www.webpronews.com/penn-state-to-pay-59-7-million-in-abuse-settlement-2013-10/
Mon, 28 Oct 2013 19:43:28 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=276158Nearly two years after news of the Penn State child molestation scandal broke, the university has agreed to pay a settlement of almost $60 million to 26 victims that were sexually assaulted by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Thirty ... Read More

]]>Nearly two years after news of the Penn State child molestation scandal broke, the university has agreed to pay a settlement of almost $60 million to 26 victims that were sexually assaulted by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.

Thirty two men claimed to have been sexually abused by Sandusky, but Penn State dismissed six of the claims, saying they were "without merit."

"We hope this is another step forward in the healing process for those hurt by Mr. Sandusky, and another step forward for Penn State," University President Rodney Erickson said in a statement that was posted to Penn State's website. "We cannot undo what has been done, but we can and must do everything possible to learn from this and ensure it never happens again at Penn State."

According to Penn State's website, the settlement money won't be funded by student tuition or taxpayer funds. The university believes that several liability insurance policies will cover the settlement.

Sandusky was convicted in June 2012 on 45 criminal counts of abuse. He was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison, which should keep the 69-year-old former coach behind bars for the rest of his life. Sandusky, who has always maintained his innocence, applied for a retrial earlier this month and was denied.

The NCAA levied serious sanctions upon Penn State for lack of university control in the sex abuse scandal. Joe Paterno, PSU's late legendary coach, was said to have known about Sandusky abusing boys in the showers at the university, but never turned it in. This led to Paterno's firing shortly after the scandal broke.

Penn State lost 40 football scholarships, was fined $60 million and received a postseason ban as part of the sanctions. The NCAA decided to restore the football scholarships this past September. Penn State will get to add in 5 scholarships next year and will add 5 more scholarships each year until they reach the normal amount.

]]>Casey Anthony Reaches Settlement with Texas Group EquuSearchhttp://www.webpronews.com/casey-anthony-reaches-settlement-with-texas-group-equusearch-2013-10/
Tue, 22 Oct 2013 16:47:55 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=274243Casey Anthony, the Florida mother involved in the infamous 2011 acquittal for the 2008 murder of her 2-year-old daughter, has reached a settlement agreement with EquuSearch (TES). The Texas-based company specializes in search and rescue operations in an effort to ... Read More

]]>Casey Anthony, the Florida mother involved in the infamous 2011 acquittal for the 2008 murder of her 2-year-old daughter, has reached a settlement agreement with EquuSearch (TES).

The Texas-based company specializes in search and rescue operations in an effort to locate missing persons. Headquartered in the Houston suburb of Dickerson, Texas, the organization gained notoriety with the high-profile abduction case of Natalee Holloway.

The organization made headlines again with their search for 2-year-old Caylee Anthony. Six months after the disappearance and death, the toddler's body was found duct-taped in a wooded area not far from Anthony's home. The organization sued Anthony's

Texas EquuSearch claims that they shelled out more than $100,000 for the search of Caylee Anthony. They brought “countless” volunteers on board to participate in the nation-wide search for the child, who was already dead. In wake of the national search,, the company even had to turn down others in the same predicament to give Anthony's case top priority.

"Texas EquuSearch's mission and purpose is to help families and individuals to find their missing loved ones," he said. "That's the reason they helped the Anthony family in the first place. While they were searching for Caylee, they got calls from other families for help and had to turn them away."

The breaking point for EquuSearch came when Anthony's lawyers informed jurors during the trial that the child drowned in the backyard pool, and that Anthony was well aware that the child was not missing.

Attorney Marc Wites, who represents Texas EquuSearch, stated on Monday that the organization opted not to go to trial with the case. Anthony, 26, filed for bankruptcy at the top of the year in wake of the mounting cost she incurred amid the trial. She stated that she only has approximately $1,000 in assets, with more than an estimated $800,000 in debt.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the search organization will be granted an unsecured claim of $75,000 under the terms of Anthony's settlement in her bankruptcy case. However, it's relatively unlikely that they'll receive that amount. They will probably get a small portion of whatever can be salvaged of Anthony's estate through her bankruptcy trustee. But, judging from the grim estimation of Anthony's assets, they won't walk away with much, if anything at all.

The motion was filed last week in the federal bankruptcy court of Tampa, Florida. However, in exchange for the acceptance of the settlement terms, EquuSearch will not be entitled to any other monetary claims, and will be forced to cease any further action in the case.
Image via Wikimedia Commons | Casey Anthony

]]>Casey Anthony Reaches Settlementhttp://www.webpronews.com/casey-anthony-reaches-settlement-2013-10/
Mon, 21 Oct 2013 23:57:31 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=273933Casey Anthony has finally reached a settlement with one of the search groups, Texas EquuSearch, who scoured Central Florida on a wild goose chase for her 2-year-old daughter in 2008. The organization claims that they spent over $100,000 while searching ... Read More

]]>Casey Anthony has finally reached a settlement with one of the search groups, Texas EquuSearch, who scoured Central Florida on a wild goose chase for her 2-year-old daughter in 2008.

The organization claims that they spent over $100,000 while searching for Caylee Anthony. They were one of three creditors that filed federal complaints against Anthony. They came to an agreement today to settle for claiming $75,000 from her Chapter 7 bankruptcy that she filed in January. It is reported that she has nearly $800,000 in debt and only around $1,000 in assets.

Texas EquuSearch lawyer Marc Wites said: “Texas EquuSearch’s mission and purpose is to help families and individuals to find their missing loved ones… That’s the reason they helped the Anthony family in the first place. While they were searching for Caylee, they got calls from other families for help and had to turn them away.”

EquuSearch made the decision to settle so that they could focus their time and funding on searching for more missing children. “While many have debated whether Casey Anthony will ever financially profit from Caylee’s death, one thing is certain; the time and money that [EquuSearch] must spend to pursue these claims are being taken from other families that really need their help,” said Wites.

Anthony was found not guilty of murder in 2011. She has been staying in hiding since the ruling.

]]>JPMorgan Chase Admits Fault, Agrees to Pay $920Mhttp://www.webpronews.com/jp-morgan-chase-admits-fault-agrees-to-pay-920m-2013-09/
Fri, 20 Sep 2013 02:29:32 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=263074While monumental corporate cases tend to drag on for years, this particular case involving JPMorgan Chase & Co. won't be one of them. The United States' largest bank has been ordered to pay an astronomical fine in the staggering amount ... Read More

]]>While monumental corporate cases tend to drag on for years, this particular case involving JPMorgan Chase & Co. won't be one of them. The United States' largest bank has been ordered to pay an astronomical fine in the staggering amount of $920M, and no judge or jury was needed to provide a legitimate verdict. JPMorgan not only agreed to pay the fine, they even went so far as to admit fault.

In a rare admission, after only sixteen months of litigation, JPMorgan has admitted to careless moderation over trading which prompted a $6 billion loss that contributed to the distress of the financial sector last year. The company took full responsibility for its allowance of the risky trading practices that contributed to the devastating loss.

U.S. and United Kingdom regulators explained that JPMorgan's poor judgment in trade monitoring over the London Whale operation gave traders the ability to distribute falsified, inflated values for specified transactions as a means of disguising significant losses as they mounted.

Forbes reports the estimated $920 million fine will be disbursed to a number of designated government entities, which include three U.S. Regulators, in addition to the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority. The collective, augmented amount will go down in history as one of the largest punitive fines ever levied against a financial institution. The Securities and Exchange Commission required the bank to admit fault in addition to paying a $200 million fine. The Office of the Comptroller of Currency imposed a $300 million fine, and the Federal Reserve Board applied another $200 million to the mounting list of punitive damages. Then, the British Regulator imposed an estimated $220 million fine as a means of reparation. This particular settlement is no 'slap on the wrist.' Even with the settlement calculated and agreed upon by JPMorgan, the New York-based banking empire is still undergoing investigation by the United States Justice Department to ensure no criminal violations should be imposed.

In a statement on behalf of JPMorgan, CEO Jamie Dimon said,
“We have accepted responsibility and acknowledged our mistakes from the start, and we have learned from them and worked to fix them. We will continue to strive towards being considered the best bank – across all measures – not only by our shareholders and customers, but also by our regulators. Since these losses occurred, we have made numerous changes that have made us a stronger, smarter, better company.”

This statement was quite contradictory to his response in the spring of 2012. At that particular time, Dimon belittled the allegations, claiming the reports were “tempest in a teapot,” just weeks prior to the bank's admission to losing billions. However, JPMorgan's goal is to move forward in a more prosperous as expeditiously as possible.

]]>Man Pays in Quarters: 600,000 Coins for Settlementhttp://www.webpronews.com/man-pays-in-quarters-600000-coins-for-settlement-2013-08/
Sat, 03 Aug 2013 04:48:29 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=246702An Illinois man chose to protest an appellate court's decision in his own way Wednesday. Dr. Roger Herrin, who lost his son in a car accident in 2001, had to pay back money awarded to him by a judge, so ... Read More

]]>An Illinois man chose to protest an appellate court's decision in his own way Wednesday. Dr. Roger Herrin, who lost his son in a car accident in 2001, had to pay back money awarded to him by a judge, so he payed part of it back in quarters.

Herrin told WSIL TV 3 he chose to pay the settlement in quarters only because he "couldn't do it in pennies."

According to court records, in June 2001, Herrin's 15-year-old son Michael was in a Jeep hit by a truck that ran a stop sign. There were three other passengers in the Jeep who suffered injuries. Michael Herrin was thrown from the Jeep and killed.

Dr. Herrin accepted a settlement offer of $1.65 million on behalf of his son's estate. At the time, a judge ruled he should also receive an additional payout of almost $678,000 from both the insurance policy of the Jeep and the truck.

But under Illinois law, an appellate court found that Herrin's estate was not entitled to money from the Jeep's insurance policy, because a larger payout was already given to the survivors of the Jeep accident, who had over $900,000 in claims. Herrin was then ordered to pay back money to the other accident victims.

Thirty-six-hundred pounds of quarters were delivered to the offices of Douglas Dorris, an attorney for one of the other passengers in the Jeep. The seventy-five bags, containing 4,000 quarters each, had to be taken by a Brinks truck from the law office to a bank to be counted.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal Law Blog, Dr. Herrin said, “They were not happy. They didn't know what they were going to do with it. And I wasn’t real congenial.”

Mark Prince, a lawyer representing the other two accident victims, said, “If he wants to pay in quarters, that’s his business.”

A retired podiatrist, Dr. Herrin has a company that owns three nursing homes. He is currently a member of the Southern Illinois University board of trustees, and has served on other state government boards.

]]>Apple, HTC Settle All Their Patent Lawsuitshttp://www.webpronews.com/apple-htc-settle-all-their-patent-lawsuits-2012-11/
Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:52:35 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=202065Apple and HTC announced this weekend that they have reached a global settlement that dismisses all current patent lawsuits between the companies. In addition, the companies have signed a ten-year license agreement that extends to current and future patents held ... Read More

]]>Apple and HTC announced this weekend that they have reached a global settlement that dismisses all current patent lawsuits between the companies. In addition, the companies have signed a ten-year license agreement that extends to current and future patents held by both Apple and HTC. The "terms" of the settlement are confidential, so it is unknown how much money has changed hands.

“HTC is pleased to have resolved its dispute with Apple, so HTC can focus on innovation instead of litigation,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC.

“We are glad to have reached a settlement with HTC,” said Tim Cook, CEO of Apple. “We will continue to stay laser focused on product innovation.”

Though the terms of the settlement haven't been released, I think it's safe to say that HTC will be paying plenty of money to Apple. Apple is the company who began these lawsuits, and the company does not have a history of backing down from patent trials.

Back in August, the judge in the U.S. trial between Apple and Samsung urged the companies to resolve their dispute before the verdict could bring possible disaster to both parties. No settlement was reached, and the move paid off for Apple, which was rewarded just over $1billion.

Unfortunately for Apple, it has not been as successful with patent litigation outside the U.S. In the U.K., Apple was ordered to publish an embarrassing apology to Samsung. Samsung and Motorola won a lawsuit against Apple in Germany back in September, and last month a court in the Netherlands ruled that Samsung did not infringe Apple's multi-touch patents. Last week, a patent troll was able to win a verdict against Apple, nabbing $396 million.

]]>Sketchers Settlement: Company to Pay FTC $40 Million Over Adshttp://www.webpronews.com/sketchers-settlement-company-to-pay-ftc-40-million-over-ads-2012-05/
Wed, 16 May 2012 17:39:49 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=157239Sketchers settlement is going to cost the company an impressive $40 million dollars. I suppose that's what you get when you attempt to trick consumers into thinking they can get a round rump like the one found on Kim Kardashian's ... Read More

]]>Sketchers settlement is going to cost the company an impressive $40 million dollars. I suppose that's what you get when you attempt to trick consumers into thinking they can get a round rump like the one found on Kim Kardashian's backside by simply walking around in a pair of overpriced sneakers. If it was really that easy, everybody and their one-legged grandmother would be hobbling around the planet with this stuff strapped to their feet.

The Federal Trade Commission recently found that Sketchers USA Inc. had misrepresented their product to the American public by claiming that their Shape-Ups would help individuals lose weight while toning their posteriors by simply strolling around the mall. The same thing happened to Reebok last year; the company was forced to pay nearly $25 million for stating that their EasyTone sneakers would help folks find the waistline they lost years ago.

According to the FTC, Sketchers claimed that scientific studies proved their Shape-Ups could help people increase their "muscle activation" by several impressive degrees by wearing the product every single day. Not surprisingly, this was pretty far from the truth. Sketchers, of course, is disputing the claims.

It's also worth noting that Sketchers is allowing duped customers to refund their misguided purchases. So if you've got a pair of Shape-Ups in the closet collecting dust, perhaps it's time to brush them off and stroll down to the store you bought them from. Hey, you might just lose some weight in the process.